You know, when you learn something from what you did you look back and
say: "Yea, that makes sense. Why didn't I think of
that?" That's what seems to constantly happen with your
layout.
The pictures on this page were take by a good friend and a member of our
club, Fred. He has a nice digital camera and stopped by for a few hours
of Steam action last weekend when it was 75 degrees and sunny.
Lets start with over all design. When I started I was thinking like a
prototypical runner. You have grades and curves and you interact
with you train to navigate those obstacles. But once I was running I
realized that I was more of an enjoyer. 
I
enjoy the scenery the train runs though, the train and its cars as it moves
along and to flip a switch once in a while for a change. The constant
interaction of a prototypical layout was not for me. I like to set the
throttle and sit back and enjoy. This is something you really need to
figure out before you start. With grades up to 4 degrees and some
slightly tight turns, this layout called for constant interaction. Ruby
may be small but after she crawls up the grade, she tears off down the other
side with brake men jumping from the roofs of trailing cars! So what am
I saying? If you want to sit back and enjoy the ride, open those turns
up a little and get rid of any steep grades. So that's what I started
doing. I took a couple of hours, borrowed a transit and set all the
track within 1/4" of my main level. I still have a little leveling
to do here and there but Ruby runs real nice now. Set the throttle and
she purrs right along!
You
may have notice from the pictures that the tunnel is all apart. Another
lesson learned. Some of the red wood I used had stain on one side.
I wasn't paying attention when I built the tunnel entrances and retaining
walls. I glued some of the parts together on the stain side. Sure
enough, the stain won the battle and the boards popped apart. So it's
back to the work bench. Another lesson learned. Oh, I also
learned, during the installation of these pieces, that you need to attach a
few longer pieces to the back so that you can anchor them into the
ground. Putting them on after can lead to loose boards.
The
last of the current lessons has to do with dirt! You see, I
cleared out all the grass and planted a few miniature trees and ground
covers. The problem lies in that if you don't cover all the loose dirt
it will move! That's why they call it loose dirt! Guess I missed that
lesson in college. When we started getting the heavy rains all of the
loose dirt washed into my dry river beds. By the time two weeks of rain
was over, I had no more river beds. I ended up shoveling 3 to 4 inches
of top soil out of the beds! So the moral of the story is, get that
ground cover down as soon as you can or you'll be moving that dirt again!
Well, that's all for now. I will ask the club members to send me some
pictures from Greenfield Village for posting here so come back soon.
I'll also have some pictures from the layout as it changes and the new
projects I am starting.
Remember if it's hot, don't sit on it!
Johnny F.
